Yodel saved from collapse by fast-growing rival

Parcel delivery firm Yodel has been saved from collapse in a last-minute rescue deal led by one of its rivals.

The business has been taken on by YDLGP, a newly-formed company backed by investment bank Solano Partners and the team behind logistics firm Shift.

Yodel makes about 190 million deliveries a year and it is thought the deal will safeguard thousands of jobs.

Its chief executive Mike Hancox said the move will "ensure continuity" for employees and customers too.

The firm was owned by the Barclay family and its clients include big brands such as Very, Argos, Wren Kitchens, Gousto and second-hand clothes platform Vinted.

The Liverpool-based company with 50 sites was acquired by YDLGP for an undisclosed sum.

The firm employs about 10,000 people and there had been concerns about its future as one of the UK's biggest courier companies.

The consortium behind the rescue deal includes the founder and leadership team behind Yodel's rapidly-growing rival Shift.

The hope is that once the deal is through, a new "super scale" logistics platform will have been created, Yodel said in a statement on Tuesday.